It’s also National Raspberry Cream Pie Day, but I couldn’t find a cool picture for that, so we’ll just forget it, ok? I try to follow a plant-based diet as closely as I can, but sometimes I find myself in situations that force me to compromise my own values. A recent outdoor wedding, and my bands’ participation in an outdoor music festival in Alabama this past weekend are good examples of what I’m talking about. I suppose I could plan ahead and take all of our food to events like this, but I find it hard enough to get myself packed, not to mention all the necessary instruments, gear and arrangements for my dog and fall garden to survive in my absence to pull that off. So, what’s a veg-head to do? I’ve been told many times by other vegetarians that they haven’t eaten meat in 10 years or more, but I can’t say the same. Here’s the thing: I LIKE meat, I just feel it’s not a good choice for my health, nor for my planet and especially for the animal that’s killed. All of those things bother me about eating meat, yet, this weekend I ate fish and bacon! I haven’t eaten bacon in many, many years because there’s just no way in hell I can justify it as a good food choice, yet Saturday morning I succumbed to the smell of it cooking outdoors (is there any other smell on earth quite as tantalizing?) and ate two slices with my breakfast. I thought about the poor pig it came from that whole day, and by Sunday morning, when I was greeted throughout the festival grounds with that same wonderful smell, I was able to resist by thinking of ‘Onion’. Here, take a look at him:

(Do you think he’s smiling because he felt safe with me?) I do find it ironic that on this World Vegetarian Day I woke up to the news of yet another big beef recall going on because of E-coli bacteria and ‘foreign materials’ found in meats from a packing house in Canada. I’ve got several friends that I admire greatly, that are doing all they can to produce humanely raised, grass-fed meats and cheesesto sell at our local Farmer’s Markets, so I’d just like to suggest that if you’re going to eat meat, at least consider supporting hard-working farmers like them. And perhaps those ‘Meatless Mondays’ really could become a regular part of your weekly diet-it is Monday after all. And remember, it doesn’t have to be ‘all or nothing’. Just ask me about that part 😉